Range: Can be found from Mauritania, through Sudan, Niger, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania.
Habitat: Although cliffs and gorges are used for roosting and breeding, the vultures will otherwise reside in grassland and sub-Saharan arid locations.
Description: Close to three feet in length, weighing about 15-20 pounds, these birds have an eight-foot wing span. Both sexes colored the same; mottled brown or black with a whitish underbelly. The base of the neck has a white collar, and the eyes are yellow or amber.
Adaptations/Habitat: Bare necks help keep them clean while feeding on carcasses. Long neck and smallish head are good for getting into carcasses to get at the meat.
Breeding/Growth: These vultures lay one egg per year, typically after long rainy seasons. On cliff sides, they have been observed to congregate in nest colonies from 10-1000 pairs. Eggs are incubated for 55 days; fledging of the chick is approximately 150 days.
Diet: Carrion.
Exhibit: across from flamingos
Notes: Listed as a 'near-threatened' species on IUCN red list.
